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By India Today News Desk: After Surat’s sessions court dismissed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s plea for a stay on his conviction in a defamation case, the BJP welcomed the court’s decision.
The party said that the judgment clarified that the constitution triumphs in India and not dynastic politics.
“Today’s judgment clarified that the constitution triumphs in India and not dynastic politics. This is a slap on the face of the Gandhi family. Today, Surat court proved that the law is the same for everyone and no one is above it. This is a blow to the arrogance of the Gandhi family and a victory for the common people of India,” said BJP’s national spokesperson Sambit Patra.
Patra alleged that the Congress was “mobilising its ecosystem” after Gandhi’s conviction in the case last month “to carry out a movement against the judiciary and even got statements issued against India”.
A sessions court on Thursday dismissed Rahul Gandhi’s plea for a stay on his conviction over his “Modi surname” remark.
Last Thursday, the court of Additional Sessions Judge RP Mogera had reserved its verdict for April 20 on Gandhi’s application for a stay, pending his appeal against a lower court’s order sentencing him to two years in jail in the case.
Gandhi had submitted that the trial court treated him harshly after being overwhelmingly influenced by his status as an MP.
The 52-year-old politician was elected to the Lok Sabha from Wayanad in Kerala in 2019. His disqualification happened on March 24, a day after a metropolitan magistrate court in Surat sentenced him to two years in jail. The criminal defamation case against Rahul was filed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Purnesh Modi under sections 499 and 500 (defamation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The case against Gandhi was over his remarks, “How come all thieves have Modi as the common surname?” which he made during an election rally at Kolar in Karnataka on April 13, 2019.
In his submission, Gandhi said that if the March 23 judgment of the trial court is not suspended and stayed, it will cause irreparable damage to his reputation.
The Congress leader said that he was sentenced in a manner so as to attract the order of disqualification because the trial court was well aware of his status as a Parliamentarian.
(With input from PTI)
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